Teen Titans; New Divides; Universal War – Finale – Chapter One: When the Cosmic Reaches Collide
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The war drums had started along, as soldiers in a glittering iron and brass paraded and floated on air down the streets of the Elemental Queen's home realm.
Seasonal flowers turned to red and amber up in trees that lined every street corner, while in the dusk – light of a last farewell, Persephone had shown how mens' hearts could be swayed by such things as combat and betrayal. As the second hand met the first, the clock struck in vibrations that ushered in a new dawn.
Aluehainyu, - no…Reborn Queen Ereshkigal of the Under Earthen Realms was beyond saving. She just wanted nothing more than absolution; for her fallen brother Lord Destiny to be avenged.
She readied her staff of a goddess and chanted for the gates to be bled open into another time, another realm full of devastated souls like those of her own kindred.
~I was never a fair ruler to any one soul. ~ To this, she believed in the voice of the dark, of the void. She did not trust the gods of the sun, but of war.
And those who opposed this battle both of sun and moon would be forced to bow before the fates themselves, should one brave soul come forth to defy order within the realms of the spirits and of immortal beings.
One being had made it through the gates to the waking world of mortal woe. A boy; a false king who had driven his stake to be planted deep below Gaia's roots and to spread. He was a king no more than he was a crook who had killed. Erishkigal's God. Of Destiny and of fate itself, she was sure he would be powerless to predict her council's next sudden move in the dark of the mysterious void of creation.
Had a voice not cried out to the one being hunted for their blood….
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A layer of sweat hit his pillow, as the young Story - teller rose to gasp out aloud to the night air. Raku; in a daze was still tired from running in his dreams. Ignito, was no more than a whisper, and his face had long since been quieted. Before his young lord's bed, slept a second face.
Young Raku had one companion besides his new family here on the earthen divide of the present day. The Jinni boy was as he had once been, completely transformed and only a cat to his lap, besides being the one who could influence him in the worst ways possible.
In a word, he was being haunted by it. The Jinni was kind of…. like a smaller familiar that had his face but not his ears or same eyes as a boy born to a reincarnated god and sorceress by her bloodline. Raku's name was still unable to be changed here, and Aiden had reassured that one day he would find his happiness –
He geared his eyes towards the first clock he saw in his new room in Tokyo. The time read….
He gasped.
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"I am late! Oh no! Why did you not wake as well??" He turned to the yawning jinni as he stretched out on the bed and languidly batted open an eye at the boy with tousled, dark long hair.
He snapped off his covered, and Raku almost forced the Jinni to glare at him by doing so. It stuck out its tongue and whined at the rough morning awakening.
"I cannot miss the bell…. I cannot miss this at a –
"Raku?" The boy whipped around as the other imaginary Jinni went and swept back into his mind. The door cracked open as light poured through it to show Aiden, standing there with a wary look and a cup of coffee in his other hand. His new job was getting up early too and he had a job here in Tokyo since the switch. His schooling had moved to an on-sight position so he thankfully did have Shoji to thank for the move.
"Asa gohan? –
"Hush it! WE will be late and I know I overslept! We can do for a Japanese course later…. When is the train –
"I…think in four –
"Thirty minutes…I am not going to shower then!" Proclaimed the fifteen-year-old, anxiously yet proudly.
"You…grew up, alright." Snickered the nineteen-year-old blonde to his brother. "Are you sure you wouldn't want a shower, since I can see you had a pretty rough night?" He pointed to how messy the t teen currently looked, earned a snorting laugh from the nervous demi – creature. "Hah! I feel –
"Go in. I'll make you something to eat, then lay out your clothes and things that he'll need you to bring on your trip."
"I did pack…. enough, last night." Raku yawned and walked past the blonde on his way to the kitchen, as they left the teen's room to start the day.
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~ Five am for a magician is a sham, and whoever thinks that "Gandalfo" is the best there was, you'd be guessin' wrong, mate. I'm in over my head, but Batman has a favor and I did say I needed a housekeeper for my flat. It and the house of mystery is enough to entertain any daemon children on such an occasion. I'm getting a protégé of my very own, and Chas is finally out of the house… Thinking though, I read the lad's M.O. He's not just about to pull the wool over my eyes. A jinni is a trouble maker at the best of times, so I have to have my walls up and…Well, five A.M sharp. Looks like my next ride is to Japan's station to pick up the kid. When did I need a schedule? I'm a freelancer…but…he needed me, so I'll bite. As long as my tomes from the house stay in one place, I don't want to run into his anytime soon…~
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Seeing the clock turn another second over, Dick Grayson shuffled his paperwork and sat up in his new office seat. Being on the force for as long as it had taken him, he was aware that Kori's new exclusive role would also have them comfortable, while his promotion was also in the works as of this month. He'd gotten a role in clearing the biological nightmare plants off the streets in only weeks, so it must have been quite the effort. Unfortunately, not everyone agreed.
Dick frowned down at the case file from a month prior to one investigation that involved the mob and a business deal that had gone global. Well, whatever that meant, he just was glad to have his badge and tie tucked on just right…
Anna, however. And Aiden, Ava and Ami?
And now their newest addition, Raku…
All swept up in a fairytale situation that had started and wasn't going to end with "Robin," but a Chosen's sacrifice.
"Was that why Slade -
" Grayson! My office, now."
Dick hung his head… At least someone was watching over him that didn't want to maul him in his sleep.
Slade was still a figure of mystery, but did Anna know? Why did he…need her to hunt down his least favorite marine?
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Ami's face was starting to seem more like the goddess's these days. She was going to turn a year older in the spring soon! Kaede and her posse had been summoned with Yumi to the Eternal and Spirit realm of the east, while Ami didn't like having Shoji up her butt every few seconds. Due to his pact with Death now being on hold, he could stay in the mortal realm to see to a few things, but nothing more than that.
She had to say though, his cooking was five star "sugoi!" (typo!)
"Is supper going to be just you and me, tonight?" Ami asked the dog as he made sure to keep the broiled salmon and wilted greens extra creative on their plates.
"Ah…yes, but no. We have one more coming to poke their head in the door."
"Who? Was it…gasp!! Is it Jackie!!??" As her powers had grown, she tended to predict the future at times as well. No secrets were really kept long between Ami and her companions. "And we have one more, so you'd better not try to make them wear Nekomimi in my pad. Understood, Oujo – Sama?"
He'd started calling her this as a cute enough nick name, but it was really to keep the real Amaterasu from spitting on his head. That meant princess, but Ami just thought it was respectful to the real sun maiden somehow.
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At the barrier of earth and sky, Lady Ava was watching down below intently at the fire being lit at the turret to her home….a band of ice – walkers from the far north were returning to wipe the blood off, as a battle had left her soldiers damaged goods in the princess's wake. She was to be queen in the year. She had to be ready, without Chris this time.
~Open the gates! Tend to the wounded! ~ She directed the guards above to see to these watch persons. The beings of frost were devastated; eyes bleak and hearts frozen stiff as beams to a tall spiny fir.
~We….made it to the border of her lands, and we were taken by surprise…~ Spoke a blight stricken ally with bandaged legs and a cough. ~We fought until our ammo was dry….princess….tell the princess to wait…we cannot attack…the snow –
~We have not lost a single war until now. ~ Ava came before the male and stood in her warrior's attire to ensure that they were now safe from danger. Her hair was short enough to cover her elven ears, but her wings were still not a part of her being. She had to save those relics for the day when an onslaught threatened those she now fought to protect. Her creator, Leia would only have to wait to overtake her bod and spirit, until then.
~The storm in place will not allow them into our kingdom. What was it that made you so fearful to fall? Tell me, I must be ready to face the enemy. ~
A second female warrior with a makeshift bandage to her left eye shook her head and exclaimed, ~ The one that sent us to Lady Hel's domain to beg forgiveness, was the daughter of the wolves! Small Paw, who has now grown! ~
(Small Paw was White wolf Aneiu and Dark wolf clan leader Aneius's offspring. She's not aware that the darkness from Lil's powers had reached her, so we will clue you in later as to how. She was in the earlier arcs and rules with her clan over the Aurora or the far northern plane of spirit, while Ava is actually protected by the clan. It is her totem, but she isn't really familiar yet. )
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At the station, they could very well have said farewell in a speck, as Aiden and Raku found the tall, scraggly bearded individual from one of the Titans' older stories of warlocks and wizards to be a sight for sore eyes. It was hard to picture just how to - do this gent was, in the magical sense, but he'd never once waved to them as he popped over with a cocktail toothpick in his mouth, chewing it pensively. Hand in the pockets of his oversized tan trench coat, he looked more private eye instead of a sorcerer to Raku. The boy had not seen such a fellow, besides Ardius…
"Kind' of tiny to be a magus; are you the one I've come to fetch –
"I…I am?" Raku gulped, feeling a light startled by the question and the male's speculating stare.
Aiden immediately got defensive, seeing Raku was terrified of this imposter. "Wait a sec, bro. Hey, are you…. Mr. John Constantine? My Dad, do you know Mr. Gra –
"Yeah, the Wayne clan and I are still in connection, laddie. We go a ways' back." The man's demeanor became more relaxed by Aiden's question. "So, I have to be sure to get your names right…Right, I'm…. Mr. Constantine to im' and you I take it are Richie's middle son? He sent the memo, but I didn't think to see you both."
Aiden cleared his throat. Raku was still a bit shy and didn't want to intervene or make anyone annoyed to –
~Why Don't you introduce yourself? ~
Raku gasped and dropped his bags.
"The lad is, alright?" John blinked and must have seen how the kid was spooked by a familiar…
Hmm…
"He is clairvoyant." Aiden didn't lie, but he didn't speak the whole truth.
"Wow, did your mum pass down the knack, or are you naturally gifted…"
"R…raku." The boy tried to say quickly. "I…am called Raku, here. Mr. Constantine." The fifteen-year-old licked his lips and went on to add, "You'll be my teacher in the…. craft I know, correct?" He looked up innocently enough, but below that mask was something far more powerful. Long dark hair in a white punk inspired outfit, reddish maroon - shaded brown eyes…a real teen wonder.
Nodding his head, John was glad to be called a "teacher," but yet that still cut into his grunt work on a daily time table of sorts. He was getting paid to do this, but…the kid wasn't aware of how much homework the magi here had dabbled through to get up to speed with the kid's story. His history was tragic enough. A real Morpheus and Osiris to the psyche pomps of old.
"Well…. for starters, you left yourself open to psychic attacks….from the daemon and demon in this world."
Raku's eyes grew wide. "How?" He was impressed and immediately let his walls up. Heck, the test by Ignito was more than useful.
"And you can lower them like a drawbridge…. smashing…." The warlock blonde sighed, sarcastically pointing out that this was a lesson in itself.
"We have a long way to go…Aiden? Would you like –
"You know my name? Sneaky…" Aiden snarkily responded and saw the magi elder shrug. "Your dad told me in our earlier chat. Come off it, lads. We'll set up to go into a place that won't require a special fee."
Raku cocked his head and raised a curious brow up. "Where is that?"
"It's a secret until I have a proper summoning space available. Got a lot or a forest –
"Yeloo?! Are you really going to leave and take us out in public like that? Dude. I'm his guardian and I –
"And Dude; your kid here is a magical ancestral being that is generations older than the both of us." John shot back, crudely. "I'm here to help, or else find yourselves a new teacher –
"That's –
"I can go to the shrine, that was where my last teacher had us train my magic power." Raku chirped in, earning a mental jab from his imaginary jinni who was on Aiden's side.
"Very well. Let's be off. Aiden, I really meant it. He's in good hands. Come watch if you'd rather not mope here all afternoon."
"I think I will." Aiden huffed and tugged Raku's arm as they crossed the road with John a few feet behind, tracking their every foot fall.
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The day was still so bright, even if this October had been twenty degrees hotter on average for the rest of the mortal globe.
"We made it!" Raku let out an exhale as they'd finally gotten up the stairs to the hill where Inari's old shrine no longer stood.
"The fox god…where is it?" John saw this and it was bizarre to him, that a deity of Japanese mythos had simply…. been forgotten. No part of the temple or god's statues existed, as if history had rewritten its involvement with rice and agriculture entirely. Inari was a distant memory of what had once been, rather than having been only a month and weeks prior to Mir's attack of the earth with mutant plants.
"He went to fight beside Athena and her army of light enforcers or something. Right now, my sister Ava is trying to stop them, but it's…still up to the council to come to a verdict." The news had spread, but multiple brother deity and sister relics had become foes. Astarte was still up for grabs, but Athena…. was a strategist from the god's house. Aiden acted as if this was all just gossip to him, completely aware but still refusing to make Raku feel like he had to feel any guilt for the war these gods now raged over their worlds.
"So, where can we draw up our sigils?" Asked Raku with his eyes it up and ever so interested in seeing the magician in action. Maybe, here in this universe, John was a rock star or something?
"Right, we can start where that patch is." He pointed to a stretch of green. No trees grew there, and it looked to have only grass to cover itself in smaller patches throughout the hilltop. "We are going to need to stand away while I have things ready, and a word; if you see what is about to happen, please damned well do not shout. We are on a hill, and if word gets out that your magic and mine is…a problem…You may have to leave this universe –
Aiden gawked at the nonsense this deviant was spitting like fire balls their way.
"What?? –
"No. We won't freak out." Raku nodded and made sure to stand tall for the next lesson. "I will be able to contain us both, sir."
"Okay, lad, easy does it with being' a teacher's pet around old Johnny." Snorted the Brit. "I have to use a few words to have her here…"
John got to work with his tools as he opened a pocket to drag out some sorcery props from a hole in the fabric of his universe. Raku looked interested, though he wanted to see what was about to happen. Aiden was cautious, despite his dad and everyone else trusting that old "bloke.
He chanted once the sigils were in place and the circle blazed white and gold along the grassy power – spot.
~ Anoíxte tin pórta sto pankósmio spíti ton dimiourgón kai meletitón tou oneireménou kósmou! Afíste ton eaftó sas na faneí brostá mou!~ (Translated from Greek but not as old, all I could get.)
John turned his eyes to the air as a figure began t appear in the morning sun. the piece was doll house shaped, but more so it floated and did not appear before anyone without magic in their veins. Aiden had Raku to thank for that. The house appeared and floated while John simply levitated the boys and himself towards it as it started to shift toward the ground before they got even a foot away from the grassy hill top.
" Hmmy!!" Aiden was quieted before could scream by Raku, who glared and let the Jinni buddy clamp a set of fingers over the blonde's young jaw.
"We'll be in great hands here. Welcome, young sorcerer and company, to the Dreaming's own "House of Mystery."
He announced it, as the door shut behind them with a creak. Steadily, they stepped inside the wooden spectacle without blinking back on their world. The door shut again, and the house vanished into a fine mist.
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